Russian Infantry Attacks' Effectiveness Declining As Average Troop Age Gets Older

One of the reasons the Russians are using more motorbikes - in addition to the effectiveness of Ukrainian drones against traditional armor - is that the average age of Russian soldiers is getting older, meaning that they cannot maneuver or run like younger troops so need added boost. JL

The Kyiv Post reports:

The effectiveness of Russian infantry attacks is decreasing due to the lack of young recruits. "They have a tendency for the average age in combat units to get older. “Previously, they were young guys, but now they are 40-plus uncles. We have the same problem, but we are on the defense. And they have this problem because they attack and storm. Uncles, especially if they are from the Russian hinterland, do not run very well, especially if they are also loaded.”

Instead of heavy equipment, Russian invading forces are increasingly using small infantry groups with improvised equipment supported by drones, Maj. Viktor Trehubov, a spokesperson for the Khortytsia operational and strategic group of troops, said on state television.

“The Russians are using less and less heavy equipment and more and more assaults with light, improvised equipment, small infantry groups, and this trend is likely to grow by summer,” Trehubov said. “This is due to both the fact that they are simply losing heavy equipment and the fact that they are changing the specifics of their use of forces based on the situation.”

Trehubov continued:“Since we are now primarily engaged in a drone war, and electronic warfare devices have lost their power due to the large number of fiber-optic drones, tanks, and heavy equipment. Even with the reinforcement of electronic warfare, such devices are no longer as relevant on the front line.” 

 

Small infantry groups in cooperation with UAVs, and the ability to quickly deploy them, are taking the lead. However, this tactic is ineffective, he added.

“Russians use motorcycles for this purpose, among other things,” he said.“But with such successes, they will soon come to the point where they will only carry out such raids with little effectiveness. We are already seeing this in some areas, such as Pokrovsk and Lyman.

 

“Russians attack there constantly - they arrive on motorcycles, shoot them down, and then the next motorcycles come, and so on during the daylight hours... And maybe even after daylight hours.

“This is the format change we have at the front now, and it is likely to increase due to the increase in ‘green’ and the fact that the Russians are running out of armored vehicles,” Trehubov said.

At the same time, he noted that the effectiveness of Russian infantry attacks is also decreasing due to the lack of young recruits.

 

“First of all, they have a tendency for the average age in combat units to get older,” he added.

“Previously, they were young guys, but now they are 40-plus uncles. We have the same problem, but we are on the defense. And they have this problem because they attack and storm. Uncles, especially if they are from the Russian hinterland, do not run very well, especially if they are also loaded,” Trehubov concluded.